Microsoft confirms Windows 8 app store

There will be a centralized online hub, managed by Microsoft, for Windows 8 users to find, purchase, and download software from any publisher.

That is the latest detail to be confirmed for the company's next iteration of the widely used computer operating system.

It was confirmed in a Windows 8 blog post, in which Steven Sinofsky introduced key people and teams behind the development of the brand new OS.

There have been rumors about a centralized download hub for Windows since last year, and especially when Apple launched its iPhone-like App Store for Mac OS, it seemed like Microsoft definitely had to match that move.

The App Store as we know it today was one of the single biggest advancements in the mobile space. Mobile games and software had been around for years - some of Nokia's old handsets were compatible with hundreds of programs developed by all manner of corporations and amateur mobile enthusiasts.

The problem was that it took knowhow and a specific desire to seek out these programs in order to actually get them on your phone. Only a very small percentage ever did.

But when the iPhone launched with the App Store, making the whole process literally as easy as tapping a button, the environment changed forever, almost leaving us wondering why such a portal had never really existing on mainstream computers.

Microsoft has operated its own first-party digital download store on its website, allowing users to easily get access to Office and other software, but there is no real space for third parties there.

Launching a streamlined, easily accessible portal for users to download PC software could be one of the most monumental upgrades to Windows 8.